Halsey is taking a stand against ‘homophobic viewers’ who slammed her intimate performance of ‘Without Me’ with Jade Chynoweth at the Season 15 finale of ‘The Voice’!

Not everyone took kindly to Halsey and Jade Chynoweth’s beautiful performance at the Season 15 finale of The Voice on Dec. 18. The two got up close and personal for a contemporary dance to Halsey’s hit, “Without Me,” which follows a “wlw [women-loving-women] couple and their emotional journey,” as the singer explained. Twitter erupted in outcries that the performance wasn’t “family-friendly,” as one fan tweeted, “HORRIBLE HALSEY…WHAT A NEGATIVE MESSAGE…inappropriate!!!!,” and another simply wrote, “That was inappropriate.” The 24-year-old singer has since defended herself against NBC viewers who missed the point.

“Very proud of the emotional performance i did with @JadeChynoweth on @NBCTheVoice tonight. And also very proud to have pissed off thw [sic] homophobic viewers at home who missed the message. Thanks for watching. 🖤🦋,” Halsey tweeted after the finale aired. Many viewers agreed that the critics were being “homophobic,” as one fan tweeted, “About that halsey performance, its infuriating how a simple dance a man and woman could do would be acceptable, but the fact it’s two women makes it inappropriate?? Wtf.” Halsey also poked fun at a hater who posted a photo of her and Jade embracing on stage, who labeled it “disgusting.” Halsey retweeted the screengrab and sarcastically wrote, “I too find hugs DISGUSTING !!!”

But Halsey had a more serious message for her Instagram fans, explaining why it’s so important to familiarize television viewers with LGBTQ+ performances and stories. “Thank you @jadebug98 for being the bombest human being ever and bringing this vision to life. Lots of people angry because we performed the story of a wlw couple and their emotional journey,” she wrote in a post on Dec. 18. “Representation matters. I’m proud I got to put this on so many television screens tonight.” As Halsey’s angry mentions have proved, we need representation more than ever!